Thick-film dielectric and conductive compositions

ABSTRACT

Conductive powder and paste compositions are formed having desirable electrical and physical properties. The conductive powder and paste compositions may be used in combination with dielectric powder and thick-film paste compositions, which are formed having high dielectric constants, low loss tangents, and other desirable electrical and physical properties, to form capacitors and other fired-on-foil passive circuit components.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is related to Application Ser. No. 60/418,045, filed inthe United States Patent and Trademark Office on Oct. 11, 2002, now U.S.National application Ser. No. 10/651,367, and entitled “CO-FIRED CERAMICCAPACITORS AND METHOD FOR FORMING CERAMIC CAPACITORS FOR USE IN PRINTEDWIRING BOARDS,” and Application Ser. No. 60/433,105 filed in the UnitedStates Patent and trademark Office on Dec. 13, 2002, now U.S.application Ser. No. 10/633,551 filed in the United States Patent andTrademark Office on Sep. 16, 2003 and entitled “PRINTED WIRING BOARDSHAVING LOW INDUCTANCE EMBEDDED CAPACITORS AND METHODS OF MAKING SAME”.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The technical field is circuit components. More particularly, thetechnical field includes powders and pastes used to form dielectric andconductive elements.

2. Related Art

Passive components may be embedded in printed wiring board innerlayerpanels that are stacked and connected by interconnection circuitry, thestack of panels forming a printed wiring board. Embedded capacitors aresubject to requirements such as acceptable capacitance density, lowdielectric loss, high breakdown voltage, and good stability ofcapacitance within specified temperature ranges. For example, ElectricalIndustry Association designation Z5U requires that a capacitor'scapacitance vary by not more than +/−22% over the temperature range of10-85° C., and Electrical Industry Association designation Y5V requiresa dissipation factor (Df) of less than 3%. The physical and electricalproperties of embedded components are largely dependent on the materialsused to form dielectric elements, conductive elements, and otherelements of the components.

Barium titanate is commonly selected as the base material for pastesused to form high capacitance thick-film dielectrics. In components suchas capacitors, high dielectric constants (K) for dielectric layers aredesirable because they allow for smaller capacitor size. Pure bariumtitanate has its maximum capacitance at its Curie point, which is at125° C., making pure barium titanate unsuitable for many applications.The addition of dopants, however, combined with high temperatureprocessing, is a common method for shifting the Curie point of bariumtitanate-based materials. Specific amounts and/or chemistries of dopantsmay be chosen to place the Curie point where it is desired, such as at25° C., so that the capacitance at room or near temperature ismaximized.

Conventional dopants such as barium zirconate, niobium oxide, andstrontium titanate may not be suitable for all applications, such asfiring at the lower temperatures used in thick-film processing. Forexample, conventional multilayer ceramic capacitors with such dopantsare typically sintered for two (2) hours or more in air or in reducingatmospheres, at peak temperatures in the vicinity of 1100° C. to 1400°C. The conventional dopants are not effective for fired-on-foilapplications performed using nitrogen-based thick-film firing profilesof shorter duration and lower temperatures.

High capacitance thick-film dielectric materials such as pastes arefurther constrained by the requirement of sintering aids, which must beadded to barium titanate in order to form a well-sintered dielectric.Conventional sintering aid glasses such as lead boro-silicates, however,have lower dielectric constants and their inclusion lowers thedielectric constant of the resulting composite. The level of glassrequired for conventional formation of a well-sintered dielectric oftenresults in very low dielectric constants.

Conductive pastes are used to form the capacitor electrodes offired-on-foil capacitors. Thick-film conductive pastes typically have ametal powder component and a glass powder component dispersed in anorganic vehicle. During firing, the metal powder sinters together andthe glass forms a bond with the substrate. Conventional conductivepastes that are fired on substrates of materials such as alumina aredesigned for conductor properties, and not for electrode properties.Therefore, the pastes are generally thicker than is desirable forcapacitor electrodes and contain glasses that are not chemically orphysically compatible with a barium titanate-based dielectric.

SUMMARY

According to the first embodiment, a copper-based electrode powdercomprises copper powder, cuprous oxide powder, and lead germanate glasspowder. The copper-based electrode powder can be dispersed in an organicvehicle to form a screen-printing copper electrode composition, afurther embodiment.

The conductive compositions according to the above embodiments can beused to form circuit components such as capacitors. The capacitors canbe embedded in printed wiring board innerlayer panels which may in turnbe incorporated into printed wiring boards. The capacitors have highdielectric constants and low dissipation factors.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate the above stated advantages andother advantages and benefits of various additional embodiments of theinvention upon reading the following detailed description of theembodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description will refer to the following drawings, whereinlike numerals refer to like elements, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a table illustrating the compositions used to form dielectricpaste embodiments according to the present invention;

FIGS. 2A-2D illustrate a method of forming a fired-on-foil capacitorusing dielectric paste and conductive paste embodiments according to thepresent invention; and

FIG. 3 is table of physical and electrical properties for capacitorsformed using dielectric paste and conductive paste embodiments accordingto the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention concerns: (1) high dielectric constant thick-film bariumtitanate-based dielectric powder and paste compositions; (2) conductivepowder and paste compositions; and (3) capacitors and other componentsformed using dielectric paste and conductive paste embodiments. Thus, inthis detailed description, high dielectric constant thick-film bariumtitanate-based dielectric powder and paste compositions are disclosed;copper thick-film electrode powder and paste compositions are alsodisclosed; and fired-on-foil circuit components are disclosed. The highdielectric constant thick-film barium titanate-based dielectric pastecompositions and the copper thick-film electrode paste compositionsdiscussed in this specification may be used, for example, to formfired-on-foil passive circuit components. The thick-film bariumtitanate-based dielectric powder and paste compositions are used to formdielectrics having high dielectric constants (K) after firing.

The dielectrics formed from the dielectric paste compositions may be“thick-film” dielectrics having fired dielectric thicknesses in therange of about 10-60 microns. Other embodiments have thicknesses in therange of 15-50 microns. In one embodiment, dielectrics may havedielectric constants on the order of 3000, and in another embodiment,dielectric constants of close to 5000. The high dielectric constantdielectrics may also have Z5U temperature stability characteristics andlow dissipation factors.

The dielectrics formed from the dielectric paste compositions may havegrain sizes in the range of 0.5 to 8 microns. In the embodimentsdiscussed in this specification, the term “paste” generally refers to athick-film composition suitable for screen-printing. The thick-filmpastes according to the present embodiments comprise finely dividedparticles of ceramic, glass, metal or other inorganic solids, havingparticle sizes on the order of 1 micron or less, and an “organicvehicle” consisting of polymers dissolved in a mixture of dispersingagent and organic solvent. Specific paste compositions are discussed indetail below.

FIG. 1 is a table illustrating the individual compositions used to formthirty examples of dielectric paste according to the present invention.The ingredients are displayed in units of grams. FIG. 1 also illustratesthe ingredients comprising the dielectric powders used in forming thedielectric pastes. The ingredients that form the powders are the pasteingredients less the solvents, vehicle, oxidizer and phosphate wettingagent. Table 1 defines the chemistry of several ingredients used in thedielectric compositions of Examples 1-30 shown in FIG. 1. TABLE 1 GLASSA lead germanate of the composition Pb₅Ge₃O₁₁ GLASS B Pb₅GeSiTiO₁₁ GLASSC Pb₄BaGe_(1.5)O₁₁ GLASS D Pb₅Ge_(2.5)Zr_(0.5)O₁₁ VEHICLE Ethylcellulose N200 (11%) and Texanol (89%) SOLVENT 1 TEXANOL ® (availablefrom Eastman Chemical Co.) SOLVENT 2 DOWANOL ® PPh (available from DowChemical Co.) OXIDIZER Barium nitrate powder (84%) and Vehicle (16%)

In FIG. 1, the powder ingredients were combined to form the highdielectric constant dielectric powder mixtures. High K thick-filmdielectric pastes, according to the Examples, were formed by dispersingthe high dielectric constant powder mixture into the vehicle, solvents,oxidizer and phosphate wetting agent. Dispersing was performed on athree-roll mill, and paste-like compositions suitable forscreen-printing were formed. The organic vehicle provided goodapplication properties such as good screen-printing properties. Thesolvents provided viscosity control, and the phosphate wetting agentenhanced the dispersion qualities of the pastes. The oxidizer enhancedthe organic component burn out for firing of the paste in nitrogenatmospheres.

The resulting thick-film dielectric pastes are suitable for firing underthick-film firing conditions. The dielectric pastes can be used to formcomponents such as, for example, capacitors, and other components. Amethod of forming a fired-on-foil capacitor using dielectric pasteembodiments of the present invention is discussed in detail below withreference to FIGS. 2A-2D.

In Examples 1-30, the thick-film glass components are inert with respectto the barium titanate and act to cohesively bond the composite togetherand to bond the composite to a substrate. The amounts of glass added tothe compositions were selected so that the dielectric constant of thebarium titanate was not excessively diluted. Lead germanate glass of thecomposition Pb₅Ge₃O₁₁ (Glass A in Table 1) is a ferroelectric glass thathas a dielectric constant of approximately 150. Lead germanate glass canbe added in quantities to form a well-sintered composite withoutexcessively diluting the dielectric constant of the resulting bariumtitanate composite. Modified versions of lead germanate are alsosuitable. For example, lead may be partially substituted by other largeionic radii valence 2 cations, such as barium. Germanium may also bepartially substituted by small ionic radii valence 4 cations such assilicon, zirconium and/or titanium, as in Glasses B-D.

Pure barium titanate has its maximum capacitance at its Curie point,which is at 125° C. Dopants were used to shift the Curie point to at orabout room temperature (25° C.) and to promote grain growth of thebarium titanate. Grain growth created a higher dielectric constant witha sharper temperature coefficient of capacitance (TCC). The bariumtitanate of the pastes may be pre-doped or dopants may be addedseparately to the paste. According to selected present embodiments, asshown in FIG. 1, small amounts of lithium salt Curie point shifters werecombined with zinc fluoride to shift the Curie point and to enhancegrain growth, thereby increasing room temperature K. Lithium sourceswere used in Examples 4-30.

In Examples 18, 19 and 21-26, zinc fluoride was alloyed with otherfluorides to achieve specific properties in conjunction with copperconductive pastes A through C. Other additives were added to achievespecific properties. For example, zirconia (added in Examples 1, 8-17and 20-26) improved resistance to etching baths routinely used in theprinted wiring board industry. FIG. 3 sets forth the resulting physicaland electrical properties of the dielectric compositions when used toform capacitors. FIG. 3 is discussed in detail below.

Conductive pastes may be used to form capacitor electrodes offired-on-foil capacitors. The electrode materials should be chosen tomaximize the dielectric capacitor performance. Accordingly, theelectrode should undergo physical and chemical changes during the firingprocess that are compatible with the dielectric, such as equivalentshrinkage during sintering. In addition, chemical interactions duringsintering should be selected so as to optimize electrical performance.The conductive paste should have good coverage on the dielectric toprovide for high capacitance and should adhere well to the dielectricfor a good dissipation factor. Additional requirements include theability to co-fire with the dielectric and to be applied as a very thinlayer. Table 2 illustrates five embodiments of copper-based pastes A, B,C, D and E according to the present invention. The ingredients aredisplayed in units of grams. The copper paste compositions A, through Ewere prepared by roll milling the ingredients listed for each paste.TABLE 2 ELECTRODE PASTE A B C D E Copper powder 58.4 58.05 57.7 61.964.7 Nickel powder — 0.35 0.7 — — Glass A 1.7 1.7 1.7 — 1.9 Cuprousoxide powder 5.8 5.8 5.8 6.1 — Vehicle 11.7 11.7 11.7 14.3 15.0Texanol ® solvent 12.9 12.9 12.9 17.2 17.9 Variquat ® CC-9 NS surfactant0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.6 (available from Barton Solvents, Inc.)

The copper paste embodiments sinter during firing. The desired sinteringtemperature is determined by the metallic substrate melting temperature,the electrode melting temperature, and the chemical and physicalcharacteristics of any adjacent layers present during firing. Forexample, if dielectric and conductive pastes are used to form acapacitor, the chemical and physical properties of an adjacentdielectric layer would be used to determine a desired sinteringtemperature for the electrode paste.

In the above embodiments, the sintering temperature and time at peaktemperature during firing may be chosen to obtain maximum densificationof the dielectric and any specific properties desired from any dopantincluded in the dielectric composition. High densification leads to highdielectric constants through elimination of porosity. If a capacitor isembedded inside a printed wiring board and encapsulated with epoxyresin, a density that provides for physical properties sufficient towithstand the embedding process may be acceptable. The dielectric andconductive paste embodiments described above can be fired in nitrogenusing a peak temperature of between about 800° C. and 1050° C. Time atpeak temperature may vary from 10 minutes to over 30 minutes. Typically,the firing cycle is approximately 10 minutes at a peak of 900° C. with atotal time in the furnace of 1 hour.

Circuit components discussed in this specification may be formed byfired-on-foil technology. FIGS. 2A-2D illustrate a method ofmanufacturing a fired-on-foil capacitor structure 200 that was performedusing the dielectric and conductive pastes discussed above. FIG. 2A is afront elevational view of a first stage of manufacturing the capacitorstructure 200. In FIG. 2A, a copper foil 210 was pretreated by applyingand firing an underprint 212 to form the first electrode. The underprint212 was formed by screen-printing a conductive paste layer through a 400mesh screen to form a square area of 1.75 cm by 1.75 cm. The paste wasdried at 120° C. for 10 minutes in air in an oven, and the foil wasfired at 900° C. in nitrogen for 10 minutes at peak temperature.

A dielectric paste was screen-printed onto the underprint area of thepretreated foil 210 so that the dielectric area was contained within theunderprint area. The dielectric paste was screen-printed through a 230mesh screen to form a dielectric layer 220 that was 1.25 cm by 1.25 cm.in area. The first dielectric layer 220 was then dried at 120° C. for 10minutes in air in an oven. Referring to FIG. 2B, a second dielectriclayer 225 was applied and dried. The total thickness of the two drieddielectric layers was approximately 30 microns.

Referring to FIG. 2C, a second or top electrode 230 was formed byscreen-printing a conductive paste over the second dielectric layer 225.The second electrode 230 was 0.9 cm by 0.9 cm in size. In some cases,the second electrode was formed using the same paste as was used to formthe underprint 212. In other cases, the second electrode was of adifferent composition than that of the underprint 212. The resultingarticle was then dried at 120° C. for 10 minutes in air and then firedat 900° C. in nitrogen for 10 minutes at peak. The finished capacitor200 is shown in FIG. 2D. During firing, the glass component of thedielectric paste softens and flows, coalesces, and encapsulates thebarium titanate to form a fired dielectric 228. The dielectric 228 had afired thickness of between 20 and 24 microns and the second electrode230 had a fired thickness of between 3 and 5 microns.

Examples 1-30 of the dielectric paste compositions illustrated in FIG. 1and the electrode paste compositions A-E illustrated in Table 2 wereevaluated by forming capacitors using the methodology illustrated inFIGS. 2A-2D. The capacitors were then tested using a Hewlett Packard4262A LCR meter for capacitance and dissipation factor (Df) at 1 KHz and10 KHz. The thickness of the dielectric was measured and the dielectricconstant was calculated from the following formula:$K = \frac{C*T}{0.885*A}$

-   -   where C=capacitance in nanofarads (nF)        -   T=thickness in microns        -   A=area in square cm        -   0.885=a constant.

FIG. 3 is table of physical and electrical properties for the capacitorsformed from the dielectric paste and conductive paste embodiments andtested at 10 KHz. The capacitances were tested at several temperaturesbetween −55° C. and 125° C. using a Hewlett Packard 4278A LCR meter toestablish the position of the Curie point. The data in FIG. 3 show thathigh dielectric constants were obtained by use of barium titanate andspecific combinations of dopants in combination with specific electrodeand underprint compositions. The combinations placed the Curie pointsclose to room temperature and grew large barium titanate grains. Abetter dissipation factor Df was observed when the Curie point was lessthan room temperature.

The Curie point of the dielectric paste embodiments were shifted to roomtemperature by a lithium source. Examples 1-3 illustrate that without alithium source (lithium fluoride or lithium carbonate), the Curie pointremains at 125° C. As shown in examples 4 and 5, a lithium sourceshifted the Curie point. As shown in example 6, the addition of calciumfluoride reduced this effectiveness and shifted the Curie point only to105° C. This effect was presumably due to the high melting point ofcalcium fluoride. Example 7 shows that addition of barium fluoride andmanganese fluoride in quantities to form a low melting point combinationhelped the lithium source shift the Curie point very effectively. Thus,the lithium source was most effective in shifting the Curie point whenit was in a quite fluid form at the firing temperature. Lithium on itsown or in combination with the fluorides in examples 6 and 7, however,did not facilitate growth of the barium titanate grains.

As shown in dielectric examples 8 through 26, growth of the bariumtitanate grains was most effectively facilitated by a zinc source.Growth of the barium titanate grains produced high dielectric constantsby sharpening the Curie point. Zinc sources are corrosive to bariumtitanate, dissolving small particles and precipitating them onto largerparticles, thus growing the average particle size of the bariumtitanate. The zinc source in the above examples was zinc fluoride. Inexamples 10 through 17, zinc fluoride was used alone with the lithiumsource, and high dielectric constants were realized. However, becausezinc fluoride melts at 947° C., it may not be optimally effective ingrowing the grains when the composition is fired at 900° C. As shown inexamples 18 through 29, however, when fluxed with other fluorides toproduce a low melting point composition, the zinc fluoride was veryeffective in growing the barium titanate grains at 900° C. As a result,very high dielectric constants were realized. Effective fluoridecombinations to produce low melting point combinations included bariumfluoride and zinc fluoride combined with the lithium source.

Examples 9, 13, 16 and 19 show the effects of nickel doping of thecapacitor electrode. The nickel addition to the copper pastes had abeneficial effect in that it moved the Curie point to lowertemperatures. Examples 27 and 28 show the effects of omitting glass Afrom the underprint composition and from both the underprint and topelectrode compositions. The capacitance and Df were satisfactory, andthe Curie point was shifted slightly to lower temperatures. Example 29shows the effect of omitting copper oxide from the preprint. Theelectrical data were acceptable. However, in example 30, when copperoxide was omitted from both the preprint and the top electrode, thedielectric constant was reduced significantly and the Df was increasedsignificantly.

Compositions such as example 18 may be tailored using fluoride andlithium source combinations. These compositions have very low meltingpoints in combination with specific electrode compositions and very highroom temperature dielectric constants, such as 4800. Such compositions,however, have sharp Curie peaks. If a flatter response of the dielectricconstant to temperature is required, use of less fluid dopantcombinations and/or additions of zirconia may be employed. Suchcompositions achieve dielectric constants close to 3000. Zirconia alsohas an additional benefit in that it renders the dielectric moreresistant to the acid etchants used in printed wiring board manufacture.Other additives, such as titania, may also be added to control graingrowth and improve etch resistance. Compositions may also be tailored tohave lower K but with very low dissipation factors at room temperatureby positioning the Curie point at low temperatures.

Capacitors and other components and elements produced using the pasteand powder embodiments of the present invention are suitable forembedding in printed wiring boards. For example, the capacitor 200illustrated in FIG. 2D may be laminated to a laminate material andetched to create an innerlayer panel with embedded capacitors. Theinnerlayer panel may be laminated to additional innerlayer panels toform a printed wiring board.

The foregoing description of the invention illustrates and describes thepresent invention. Additionally, the disclosure shows and describes onlyselected preferred embodiments of the invention, but it is to beunderstood that the invention is capable of use in various othercombinations, modifications, and environments and is capable of changesor modifications within the scope of the inventive concept as expressedherein, commensurate with the above teachings, and/or within the skillor knowledge of the relevant art.

The embodiments described hereinabove are further intended to explainbest modes known of practicing the invention and to enable othersskilled in the art to utilize the invention in such, or other,embodiments and with the various modifications required by theparticular applications or uses of the invention. Accordingly, thedescription is not intended to limit the invention to the form disclosedherein. Also, it is intended that the appended claims be construed toinclude alternative embodiments, not explicitly defined in the detaileddescription.

1. A copper-based electrode powder, comprising: copper powder; cuprousoxide powder; and lead germanate glass powder.
 2. The electrode powderof claim 1, wherein the electrode powder comprises 84-100% by weight ofthe copper powder.
 3. The copper-based electrode powder of claim 2,further comprising: nickel powder in an amount of up to 1% by weight ofthe copper powder.
 4. The electrode powder of claim 1, wherein theelectrode powder comprises less than 10% by weight of the cuprous oxidepowder.
 5. The electrode powder of claim 1, wherein the electrode powdercomprises less than 5% by weight of the lead germanate glass powder. 6.The electrode powder of claim 1, comprising: at least one of barium,strontium, calcium, magnesium, manganese and zinc.
 7. The electrodepowder of claim 1, comprising: at least one of silicon, zirconium, tinor titanium.
 8. A screen-printing copper electrode composition,comprising: the powder compositions of any of claims 1 through 7dispersed in an organic vehicle.